We took a video today of my recent purchase. A 1977 Mercedes Benz 230 (123 chassis gas engine). The car has 987,000 miles on the odometer and is up for sale as is, but I went over the car and it runs great.
Here is a video shot by Scrubby (he is here on PFF under that name) and I am driving the car trying to get it to keep spinning with the 40 horsepower it has.........and NO, we don't treat our customer's cars this way.
Shawnhalolush was there as well. This is what happens when the technicians get bored and need a stress break.
enjoy....

[This message has been edited by bmwguru (edited 11-20-2008).]

That is epic. Haha.

But almost a million miles?

I'm nervous to do that stuff in my Fiero

and it only has 125k haha.

What's the puddle at the end of the vid? Melted rubber? If you're looking to sell the car, why do that to it? Especially with a million miles on it. What's been replaced in those million miles? Engine? Transmission? I know M-Bs have a reputation for longevity, but isn't a million miles even a bit much for them? (Maybe M-B would like to buy it to put in a museum. Could be worth big bucks that way.)

wow.. 1,000,000 miles in 31 years? Thats:

32258 miles per year
2588 miles per month
or 89 miles per day..

thats alot of driving..

i drive 1-2 miles per day haha

The puddle is all the rubber that came off the tires.
Mercedes wouldn't be interested until after it hits 2 million. The record is 2.6 million (last time I checked).
This is a 1977 230 which is a 4 cylinder carbureted gas engine. The cylinder head and valves were done every 250,000 miles. The transmission fluid serviced every 15,000 miles. The oil every 5,000 miles. It is the original engine, transmission, rear, interior etc.
It does need paint, but it is in decent shape for the miles....does have underbody rot but that is common in the 123 chassis.
Dave
ps...I'll be hiring another person come January....anyone want to come and play?

[This message has been edited by bmwguru (edited 11-20-2008).]

quote Originally posted by Monkeyman: What's been replaced in those million miles? Engine? Transmission?

I know not all cars make it that long, but I remember seeing a story about

a guy who owned a Chevy pickup and had a million miles on the original engine.

I guess it all depends on how well you treat it, even though it doesn't seem that way..

quote Originally posted by kawana: wow.. 1,000,000 miles in 31 years? Thats: 32258 miles per year 2588 miles per month or 89 miles per day.. thats alot of driving.. i drive 1-2 miles per day haha

It is a one owner car. It has been sitting for the last 7 years. He drives about 5,000 miles a month. His other Mercedes has 425,000 miles on it and we maintain it on a monthly basis. Valve job every 250k, oil every 5k etc
Dave

[This message has been edited by bmwguru (edited 11-20-2008).]

quote Originally posted by bmwguru: ps...I'll be hiring another person come January....anyone want to come and play?

Yes

Thats pretty neat Almost like my g/f with her 93 escort with 300+k on the odometer...its rolled over 2x (5 digit odometer) since she has had it, and she got it used...

I would love to come play, if I knew anything about the foreign cars and/or had my ASE and state inspection licensing...

When I first got my Shelby Mustang convertible, I drove it for hours and hours just to be driving it. I put nearly 50,000 miles on it in one year with cheap gas. It had to have a valve job before I had it 18 months. (Ya I know thats 1,000 @ week) I just drove around town after work every nite cruising for 5 or 6 hours, and several hundred mile trips saturdays and sundays. Just to give you an idea, Id leave home in the morning and drive to Louisville or Lexington, Ky, eat lunch there and drive back home. Usually get back home in time to go cruising for the evening.

To get back on topic...I took my Ferrari kit to the local Pontiac dealer for the exhaust recall work. When I picked it back up, they had pinched a coolant hose shut, pinched and cut off 1/2 of the plug wires, changed my special ordered 160* thermostat to a stock one (turbo wouldnt run with stock because of detonation), and managed to burn out a nearly new clutch. Tell tale tire rubber under the rear fenders. Of course they denied anyone 'hot rodded' it.

[This message has been edited by rogergarrison (edited 11-20-2008).]

Excellent! I love burnouts

You are going to put some new tires on it before you sell it, right?

I posted it up on the Mercedes forum I have belonged to for the past few years. A bunch of my customers are on that forum and know I have a good joking personality. Anyway, they are bashing the hell out of me and threatening to ban me. I really got a good laugh. I feel like 84Bill...lol
I'll probably keep the car as a shop "parts getting car". I could always part it out because the interior is mint. I'm not pressed for selling it, but I really wanted to show off a bit becasue anyone who has owned a 123 chassis knows it is almost impossible to get the rear tires to spin...that is the funny part. Those people have no sense of humor.
Dave

Dave,

You really enjoy your work don't you.

BTW, find that new building yet? LMK if I can help.

quote Originally posted by Toddster: Dave, You really enjoy your work don't you. BTW, find that new building yet? LMK if I can help.

Todd, I will definitely give you a call. I am going to have to hold off a bit...I just picked up a $45,000 alignment machine and rack for $25,000 brand new, so I have to put the plans back a few months....especially since I probably just pissed off a handful of my Mercedes customers.
It's kinda funny...no one wanted to buy the car until I posted the video. Now a they would have bought it until they saw the horrible act I had done. They didn't have any problems when I was doing a burnout to a Fiero....just a piece of garbage to them I guess.
Here is the link there for your humor.
http://www.mercedesshop.com...wthread.php?t=233575

quote Originally posted by bmwguru: ps...I'll be hiring another person come January....anyone want to come and play?

I wouldn't mind, and I'm an ASE Master Tech, but 300 miles roundtrip is a very long commute, and I couldn't be paid enough to live in Jersey (at least not until I can pump my own gas and carry hollow point ammo)

Yes I am Scrubby the one laughing like a retard! That was some fun stuff! Working for Dave is awesome, But in January i have to find a REAL job in Georgia!

quote Originally posted by Scrubby: Yes I am Scrubby the one laughing like a retard! That was some fun stuff! Working for Dave is awesome, But in January i have to find a REAL job in Georgia!

Ouch....a real job????? Damn boy, just for that I'll take a double order of eggs and coffee this morning.

Then again...where else can you throw a fire cracker at your boss (me) when I am using the torch and get away with keeping your job.

[This message has been edited by bmwguru (edited 11-21-2008).]

quote Originally posted by kawana: wow.. 1,000,000 miles in 31 years? Thats: 32258 miles per year 2588 miles per month or 89 miles per day.. thats alot of driving.. i drive 1-2 miles per day haha

I know some truck drivers that do a million miles in 8 years

quote Originally posted by bmwguru: I posted it up on the Mercedes forum I have belonged to for the past few years. A bunch of my customers are on that forum and know I have a good joking personality. Anyway, they are bashing the hell out of me and threatening to ban me. I really got a good laugh. I feel like 84Bill...lol I'll probably keep the car as a shop "parts getting car". I could always part it out because the interior is mint. I'm not pressed for selling it, but I really wanted to show off a bit becasue anyone who has owned a 123 chassis knows it is almost impossible to get the rear tires to spin...that is the funny part. Those people have no sense of humor. Dave

People are mad because you burned the tires on a car they like? What, is it "uncivilized", you shoul dbe sipping wine instead? Boooring people.

some people fail to see the humor in that. It also shows that a car with close to a million miles is still capable of smoking the tires. The actual humor is that it is almost impossible to have a 123 chassis smoke the tires. We had to really play with "some things" to get that to happen. Otherwise it is a 0-60mph in 5 minute car.
They need to loosen their ascots and drop their champange glasses and get the sticks out of their asses. I guess even though I do own a newer Mercedes Benz, I will never fit in with their crowd.
Besides....I'm much happier here.

As Dave is alluding to, the way to get high mileage reliablity is to drive the things. I firmly believe the hardest abuse you can subject a machine to is to let it sit and not use it. I bought my wife her Riviera with a 3800SC back in '01 with less than 20,000 miles on it. She commutes about 100 miles per day and the car just rolled over 400,000 miles. All the power accessories still work (although the backlight in the ATC is funky at times) and it's never had the heads off the engine. Just belts, a couple of idlers, and one transmission rebuild.

I drive my '99 Silverado about 80 miles a day and it just rolled over 300,000 miles with the 6.0L and 4L80E and everything works on it except the passenger power window switch on the driver's side won't roll the passenger window down (but it will roll it up). The truck will run with a Duramax on the highway pulling my 36' enclosed car trailer as long as you keep fuel in the tank (it does like it's gasoline when towing).

I used to drive my '83 GMC diesel service truck 80-90 miles per day and rarely had a problem with it over it's 500,000 miles but now that I don't drive it nearly as much, I'm starting to have issues like brake lines leaking, oil leaks from the power steering, etc., etc. Never had that before and I'm sure a lot of it is just sitting related.

John Stricker

quote Originally posted by bmwguru: It is a one owner car. It has been sitting for the last 7 years. He drives about 5,000 miles a month. His other Mercedes has 425,000 miles on it and we maintain it on a monthly basis. Valve job every 250k, oil every 5k etc Dave

I agree John. You have to drive them to keep them reliable. All the guys in my Corvette club with older Corvettes that are stored for 8 months a year have all kinds of expensive issues each time spring rolls around.

We made another crazy video today starring our classic car. As soon as Scrubby is done editing it he will post it up and it is definitely 120% better than the first. (and it involves some "air time")
On a serious note....the car is up for sale as parts....the interior was fully restored with genuine Mercedes carpet, trim etc a few years ago. I don't think anyone would want it as a complete car after they see what we did today.
Dave
ps...Over our holiday shop lunch today at Charlie Brown's, we are thinking of having everyone in the shop buy a car for $100. and give a $100 budget to make mods to the car to be able to compete with each other in certain events that will most likely total the car. The one that withstands the longest wins...........so, we need a replacement for Scrubby come January.....any takers?
Dave

[This message has been edited by bmwguru (edited 11-26-2008).]

I used to do that stuff for fun, haven't the time or land I used to have to play on as much.

Check out this site:
http://beatcarsgroup.multiply.com/

( I had something to do with it )

I had a gf that had a 72 (?) Charger. She bought it from an uncle for almost nothing. I painted it for her . After the uncle saw it all lookin good he told her he wanted it back and refused to give her the title. He did hand her back what she had paid and told her she could just return it in a couple of days. She came right over to me and we had some fun. First we raced it back and forth thru an old corn field, ended up sideswiping a volkswagen size boulder. Then we tried jumping ditches. Well the bumpers and headlites were falling out, it was leaking water and overheating and one side was all smashed in. Motor mounts must have busted because there was a huge pop up dent in the hood. Front end shook like hell taking it back to her house. Finished off by pouring a gallon of paint thinner over the whole thing till it ran out. She took it and left it at his house, I never heard about anything.

Woa, I'm sure I don't need to tell you those cars a re low to the ground, I'm surprised it drove afterwards!

Here is the video of what we did in our spare time yesterday....yes, I am the "professional driver"

quote Originally posted by bmwguru: some people fail to see the humor in that. It also shows that a car with close to a million miles is still capable of smoking the tires. The actual humor is that it is almost impossible to have a 123 chassis smoke the tires. We had to really play with "some things" to get that to happen. Otherwise it is a 0-60mph in 5 minute car. They need to loosen their ascots and drop their champange glasses and get the sticks out of their asses. I guess even though I do own a newer Mercedes Benz, I will never fit in with their crowd. Besides....I'm much happier here.

Thats why I'm a bimmer guy!! We understand a car was made for driving and that it should be more then a giant comfy couch with 4 wheels lol

Most bimmers last to over 250,000 miles easily. I miss my E38, but I had to sell it to pay for the new transmission in my ML.
Anyway, I am half tempted to build a ramp to have the car drive on two wheels....I think I need to do another German Fiero swap to keep my mind focused before I wind up breaking something expensive. I still like the idea of building a few cars on a strict budget to see who gets most creative with very limited resources and can compete with each other in various driving games on a real closed course.
Dave

quote Originally posted by bmwguru: Besides....I'm much happier here.

And we are happier when you are here not there .

Brad

quote Originally posted by bmwguru: I don't think anyone would want it as a complete car after they see what we did today.

Depends how much you want to sell it for!

I am $1300 short on funds for my next crazy swap. I figure the interior is worth that much in parts, so I hope to go that way. My next swap will be a shop project that has never been completed on a Fiero yet and will give a new respect to how much punishment a Getrag can handle and still stay together.
See....we actually build functional stuff too.

quote Originally posted by firstfiero: Thats why I'm a bimmer guy!! We understand a car was made for driving and that it should be more then a giant comfy couch with 4 wheels lol

Some do but most dont. I'm a BMW tech at the dealership and 90% of our customers would react the same way if that was a BMW. There are very few that care about what the car can do or drive the car hard. I probably shouldn't show them how I drive my M5.

Some short vids of my bummin around...

http://beatcarsgroup.multip...tem/4/aspenjumps.WMV

http://beatcarsgroup.multip...o/item/3/D50bogs.WMV

looks like a lot of fun. I need to get a truck and go out to the pits to just wipe away the stress.

The coolest thing, the little Dodge D50 truck was $50, and the Dodge Aspen we jumped was $25. One needed a radiator hose, and the other we made a plywood bed for because it was rusted out. Both were stick shifts. The truck was a 2wd, but we got some used 40" super swampers for the rear!

quote Originally posted by firstfiero: Thats why I'm a bimmer guy!! We understand a car was made for driving and that it should be more then a giant comfy couch with 4 wheels lol

COME ON NOW!! Us Lincoln Town Car guys beg to differ !! LOL (JOKE OBVIOUSLY)

that video came out really nice! Way to go Scrubby

Shawn